Easter Eggs and Snow Bunnies
by FifthAttempt
Summary: It's 2004, Castle is 32, Alexis is 10. Castle's latest book just made number one on the NY Times best seller list. So, what better way to celebrate than to take his daughter to Breckenridge, Colorado for Spring Break? Skiing, sledding and fun in the snow, what could possibly go wrong?
I'm having writer's block on the Is Love Enough story, so I'm hoping to break it with this bit of fluff. Set in 2004 – Castle is about 32 and Alexis is ten or eleven. One shot – first case with Kate.

Castle looked out the window onto the city below. Then he looked back at the apartment. It wasn't the loft he had wanted, not yet anyway, but it would do. It had 1100 square feet, two bedrooms, two baths, a living room with a fireplace, a little nook that he could, charitably, call his office, a decent kitchen, and, best of all, a terrace. It had set him back a bit, but his books were doing well and he'd just had news that his latest, Storm Hunter, had made number one on the Best Seller list. That, he decided, called for more of a celebration than moving to a better place.

He moved back to his desk, sat, and looked at the blank screen on his computer. With a sigh, he powered it off. He was bored with Derrick Storm at the moment. He toyed with killing him off and starting another series, but he had contracted for at least three more Storm books. Maybe, he thought, getting away from the city for a while would refresh his imagination and get him motivated. He smiled, it could also serve as a celebration. Spring Break was coming up; he and Alexis could get out of the city, maybe out of the State. He powered the computer back up. In short order he had reservations for a week at the Breckenridge Ski Resort in Colorado, airplane tickets to Denver, and a rental car.

If, he thought, he set the next Storm thriller in Breckenridge, he could write some of it off as research. Snow Storm sounded like a good title, or maybe, Ice Storm. He leaned back in his chair and stretched. Alexis would be home from school soon, he figured he could sketch out an outline for the story in his head while he started dinner.

On the flight to Denver, Alexis had lectured him on, variously, frostbite, hypothermia, hypoxia, blizzards, Colorado mining towns, Colfax Avenue (the "longest, wickedest street" in America), fourteeners, and ski terminology. She liked to do her research.

They had landed at 10:00 am, gotten the rental car, a four-wheel drive Jeep Wrangler and were on the road to Breckenridge by 11:00.

What should have been a two hour drive had turned into a four hour nightmare. Castle was lost, hopelessly lost. The GPS had started saying "turn left" at every corner from the time he exited the I-70 at highway 203. He finally capitulated to common sense and turned into a gas station. At first he tried to reprogram the GPS, but it stubbornly and politely refused to accept the final destination as a real address. Seeing no other alternative, he went into the mini-mart attached to the station and asked directions. One cup of indifferent coffee, two stale donuts, and a diet soda later he exited with what he hoped were the correct directions.

In less than half an hour he was parked in front of the condo he had rented for the week. A quick check confirmed that the owner had stocked the place with groceries as Castle had requested; the bathrooms were supplied with the preferred soaps, shampoos, and toiletries; the fireplace had wood and there was more wood stacked on the back deck; everything was clean and inviting.

"Hey, Alexis, do you want to hit the slopes after we unpack?"

"Dad, it's almost 4:00, we haven't had anything to eat since this morning. I'm hungry. Can we get some pizza or hamburgers or _something_." The emphasis on _something_ indicated that she was hungry enough to eat raw fish and octopus if that was all there was. "I want to eat, then I want to look around the town, then I want to sleep."

He was relieved. "You're sure?"

"I'm sure, and so are you."

"Well then, let's go. I saw an Italian place on the way here, You can have pizza or whatever else you want. Then we'll explore a little."

They explored very little. Alexis was more tired than she thought, and he, himself, wasn't exactly bright and lively. They looked in a couple of windows, made note of a couple of places to visit when they were more alert, and drove back to the condo.

The next day was Easter Sunday. Castle was hard put to get up earlier than Alexis, but he managed. He just barely managed to get dressed and hide a basket filled with candy and a stuffed rabbit before she was awake.

"Hey, punkin, you want pancakes for breakfast?" In spite of the early hour (for him) he was surprisingly chipper.

She nodded, "can you put chocolate chips in them?"

"Sure, I was going to do just that. Ummm, why don't you look around the place a bit, we didn't have a real chance to check it out yesterday."

She looked at him skeptically, but complied. It didn't take long before she found the basket. "Dad, don't you think I'm getting a little old for Easter baskets?" The grin on her face belied her question.

"I hope you're never too old for Easter baskets, sweetie."

After two short stacks of chocolate chip pancakes, six strips of bacon, scrambled eggs, and two tall glasses of orange juice, they were out the door and headed for the ski lift. Castle was a Black Diamond skier and Alexis was not far behind him. They were more than ready for a strenuous day skiing.

By 10:00 am, they were starving. A breakfast that would have easily held them until noon or later in New York, simply didn't cut it for a morning of skiing. They headed for the lodge's restaurant.

On the way in he, quite literally, ran into a tall, leggy, grey-eyed brunette. After the usual round of apologies, it registered on him that She. Was. Gorgeous: not just gorgeous, jaw-droppingly gorgeous. In spite of short-cropped hair that did nothing for her, she was the most striking woman he had ever seen.

"So, what's your name?" he tried to keep it smooth, but she rattled him.

"Kate. And no, I'm not here alone, I'm with friends, and , no I'm not having lunch with you. Or dinner. Or breakfast." She smiled, which almost knocked him over, and left.

He watched her walk off with a stunned look on his face.

"Uh, dad? Brunch? Or, if you're a Hobbit, second breakfast? And – close your mouth.?"

"What? Oh, sorry sweetie. Yeah, let's get something to eat."

They walked into the restaurant. He didn't see Kate turn to look at him with a twinkle in her eyes.

"Kate. Come on. Slopes won't wait."

"Yeah, coming Lanie." She followed the pretty, shorter woman.

"So, Kate, he's cute. You should really "run into" him again."

"Ah, no. Didn't you recognize him?"

"You mean he's famous?"

"Sort of."

"What do you mean … sort of?"

"He's a writer. He writes the Derrick Storm books."

"And you know that how?"

"I read a couple. His picture is on the dust jacket. He's actually a pretty good writer, but he has women hanging off him like Christmas ornaments. I don't need that kind of grief. Besides, that little girl is his daughter. I wouldn't want to interrupt father/daughter time."

"How do you know she's his daughter?"

"I heard her call him dad." Kate gave her a questioning look.

"Maybe you're right. But, still…" They walked off toward the intermediate slopes.

Castle and Alexis availed themselves of an incredible breakfast buffet, including made to order omelets, French toast, waffles, sausages, fresh fruit, cocoa, coffee, and a lot more.

"If we're not careful, we're going to get fat." He leaned back with a satisfied groan.

"We can ski it off, dad."

"Yeah, but first, let's walk it off. If I get on the slopes now, I'll just fall over and sink into the snow. You wouldn't find me until summer."

"The snow's not that deep and it's mostly from snow machines, you'd be fine."

They were walking around the lodge, toward the gift shop, when they heard a commotion coming from the beginner's slope. Ski Patrol officers were running or skiing towards a point just at the bottom of the lift that served it, and a woman's voice, just short of panic, was screaming. Forgetting his postprandial discomfort, Castle joined the dash, closely followed by Alexis.

The woman, finally calm enough to be coherent, was telling the Ski Patrol, and anyone else who'd listen, that her daughter, who had been right behind her on the slope, had disappeared. She'd turned around and she was gone, just gone. She'd looked for her, she'd called her name and she was nowhere to be found.

The young woman who was, apparently, the lead officer, finally managed to get a description. The girl was 13 years old, 5"3" tall, weighed 110 lbs, had black hair, blue eyes, and very fair skin. She was wearing royal blue North Face ski wear, a white watch cap, and black-and-blue ski gloves. Her name was Liz Kelley. When the mother described her daughter's complexion, she pointed at Alexis – "as fair as hers", she said. She produced a picture to supplement the description.

By this time Kate and Lanie had joined the crowd.

The Ski Patrol Officer, whose name was Terri Nugent, took all the information down and sent one of her people to make copies of the picture to post and pass around. She then turned to face the people who had gathered around to view the excitement. "Ok", she shouted, "everyone quiet, everyone listen. There's a missing child. There are a lot of places and a lot of ways a person can get in trouble up here, so we need to find her as soon as we can. Ski Patrol is spread pretty thin, so I'm putting a call into the Breckenridge PD for help. In the meantime, anyone here who's an experienced skier or thinks they can help in any way, stick around, otherwise, go back to the lodge and stay out of the way."

Castle and Alexis stuck around: so did Kate and Lanie.

Terri started vetting the people who stayed. She pointed at Kate. "You, what can you do?"

"I'm an NYPD detective and a decent skier," she nodded toward Lanie, "She's the head ME for the NYPD; that means she's a doctor."

Terri nodded and pointed them toward the intermediate slope, "get your skis. We'll have everyone meet here. We're going to lay out a grid so there'll be no overlap, issue pictures and descriptions of the girl, and two way radios." She looked around, "there seems to be enough people, I want you all to go in pairs." She looked dubiously at Castle and Alexis, "And you?"

"I'm a Black Diamond skier and my daughter is almost as good. I've worked closely with search and rescue groups in the past. I'm certified in CPR and First Aid. So is Alexis." Terri looked slightly surprised that an apparent dilettante and his 10-year-old daughter could possess such skills, but nodded and wrote the information down.

"Ok, same drill for you." She went on with the rest of the people who had stayed, finding out their strengths and assigning duties. Some, like Castle and Kate, were to search, others were to help provide support. Within 15 minutes she had everything in motion. The search teams were searching; the support teams were making coffee, setting up a first aid station, getting supplies, and generally preparing for the worst while hoping for the best.

Castle and Alexis found themselves searching the grid Section adjacent to Kate and Lanie. Each team searched methodically and with little wasted motion and no more conversation than was needed to convey useful information.

Alexis was the first to find something. "Hey, dad, look at this." She pointed to the white watch cap, nearly invisible against the snow. Castle picked it up.

"There are initials inside – LK." He got on the radio to Terri and told her what his daughter had found. "Yes, we're over on the blue slope, just west of the lodge. The cap has some black hairs in it and has embroidered initials."

In a matter of minutes Terri and the girl's mother were there. Terri took the cap and showed it to the mother, "Is this your daughter's?"

The woman looked at the cap carefully, not sure if she wanted it to be her daughter's or not, but she finally nodded.

Terri called the searchers, now including members of the Breckenridge Police and Fire Departments, to the area. She pointed at Alexis and said, "this young lady found a watch cap that's been identified by the girl's mother, so we're going to concentrate the search over here. I want some of you to continue searching in the black and green sections, just in case, but I want a full sweep of this area. Stay in sight of each other and radio immediately if you find something." She smiled at Alexis, "and you, young lady, good job." She escorted the mother back to the lodge.

They had been searching a good three hours when Terri sent relief in the form of hot coffee, cocoa and sandwiches. Castle, Alexis, Kate, and Lanie decided a 20 minute break to regroup, eat, ingest caffeine, and compare notes was in order. Other groups formed with, apparently, the same idea.

Alexis said, "I think she may have gotten lost on purpose."

Both Kate and Rick looked at her dubiously.

"Well, think about it. She's 13; her mom is _obviously_ a helicopter mom. I doubt she gets much time to do what she wants with mom always hovering protectively. At the same time dad's nowhere to be seen, so she's either a single mom or they're vacationing without dad. Either way dad's probably not in the picture very much. She's killing two birds – getting away from mom and sending a clear message to dad about needing more attention from him."

Kate looked thoughtful, "So, young teen-age rebellion, is that it?"

"Pretty much. Plus the added excitement of having all this fuss made over her. I mean, for some kids, this would be perfect. I bet she's someplace warm and dry, drinking cocoa, all pleased with the commotion she's caused."

Castle picked up his radio, "I'll tell Terri. Maybe she can get some people looking in suitable places. In the meantime, we should continue to search, just in case she really is lost."

"Yes," Kate said, "I suspect your daughter is right. The only sign of her we've found is the cap, and it was found in an unlikely place. We should have found more traces in this area. And, unless she was injured in some way, or spirited out of here by an abductor, she should have heard and responded to our calls; on her own, she couldn't have gotten very far."

They relayed Alexis hypothesis to Terri who agreed with Castle's plan of action. While the rest continued the sweep, she got hotel staff to do a methodical search of rooms and rest areas in the lodge. The staff responsible for maintaining the grounds started checking outbuildings and camp sites.

In less than half an hour, Terri recalled all the searchers. The grounds staff had found Liz in a storm shelter less than half a mile from the lodge. True to Alexis' prediction, she was comfortable, warm, and dry. She had raided the emergency supplies left in the shelter and made herself some cocoa from Swiss Miss and bottled water heated in the small microwave that was part of the shelter's equipment. She showed no regret or embarrassment at the distress and disruption she had caused and only seemed slightly annoyed that she had been found so quickly.

Terri and two Breckenridge police officers marched the girl off to her mother.

"There's going to be some serious talking tonight," Castle chuckled.

"I hope there'll be more than just talking," Kate said. "That girl has no real idea of the trouble she's caused. To her, it's all fun and games. She got what she wanted, never mind the distress and grief she caused, and all she felt was irritation that she was found." She frowned, "She needs to be made to realize that false alarms like that can create real danger for other people."

Castle nodded, "Yeah." He ruffled Alexis hair, which evoked a frown and a headshake from her, "I guess I'm pretty lucky that Alexis is too sensible to pull a stunt like that." He grinned, "Nah, she'd do something far more creative and much better planned out."

Alexis rolled her eyes.

"Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm past hungry," Kate turned towards the restaurant, "The management DID say that volunteers would get fed, didn't they?"

"They did indeed. Would you mind if Alexis and I sat with you?"

"I don't think there'll be much choice in the matter, there's only one table open – that I can see. So, go ahead, join us." Kate led the way to the table. She was smiling, slightly. She had to admit, he was cute. From what she could see he was also competent in a number of disciplines, smart, and fairly fit. He certainly didn't fit the stereotype of the nerdy, pudgy, writer who lived vicariously through his creations and had no real life or life skills. She particularly liked the way he interacted with his daughter. You could tell he was a good father who kept discipline but without condescension. He treated his daughter like a person in her own right, not a possession or some sort of delicate flower, incapable of independent thought or action. That was probably the sexiest thing about him. It made her think that the women hanging on to him were mostly for PR and there was probably a great deal more to him than was obvious. She felt slightly warm, which alarmed her. She squashed the reaction. She was not – WAS NOT – going to get to know him any better, she decided. She'd keep the conversation light, not let him too far in and, in turn, not let herself get too far into him.

She hadn't counted on Lanie.

They sat and a waitress came to the table almost immediately. "You're the people who figured out where the girl was, aren't you?" She smiled warmly at them.

Castle smiled back. "My daughter figured it out, we just let Terri know."

"Well, anyway, volunteers are being fed by management tonight. There's not much variety – burgers and fries, steak and fries, fried chicken and fries, fish and fries – pretty much anything and fries, potato salad, cole slaw, green salad, French onion soup, potato leek soup, vegetable soup and chocolate cake for dessert. Like I said, not much variety, but what there is, is excellent."

Alexis opted for the burger (medium rare), fries, green salad (with blue cheese dressing, thank you), and vegetable soup: and, course the chocolate cake – a la mode if it was ok. Castle got the steak, Lanie and Kate got grilled fish – everything else was pretty much the same as Alexis' order.

Lanie started the conversation, "Kate says you're a writer – thrillers and stuff like that. I have to admit, I haven't read any of your books, I'm not into thrillers, but Kate says she's read a couple of them." She looked at Kate expectantly. "Well, she's not going to ask, so I will. How do you know what to write? What kind of research do you do?"

At this point, Kate was rolling her eyes. "You don't have to answer her if you don't want to."

"I don't mind, really." He steepled his fingers. "Ok, writing is a job, just like any other. I get up in the morning and go to work, never mind that my office is in my home, I work 'til lunch, eat, and go back to work. I have a goal of so many words a day – I usually trash about three quarters of them. I stop when Alexis gets home from school – that's the best part of it, I can adjust my schedule around her needs. My first book was my in – it was successful – top ten NY Times fiction list – so my publisher wanted more of the same. I basically contracted to write several more Derrick Storm novels. Essentially I read the news or use events in my own life for ideas and material. Research is the hard part. Fortunately, I have a friend in the CIA who helped me with interviews and ride-alongs. I even managed to "help" them work a couple of cases. In spite of the press, it's far from glamorous. It can actually get pretty tedious, especially when you have a deadline and writer's block. That's about all there is, really. So, anyway, what do MEs and NYPD detectives do?"

Lanie gave the abbreviated version of her job – examine dead bodies for clues about their deaths. Kate found herself telling him far more about her job, and herself, than she had intended. She noticed that both Castle and his daughter were listening with close attention and geared her story to cover more about her job and less about her personal life.

It was about 5:00 when they finished. The meal was, as the waitress had said, excellent. The company had been good, the conversation interesting and far too informative.

Kate got up. "It's been nice meeting you both, but I'm so tired I can hardly stand. I'm going to my room for a hot bath and an early night. Lanie, are you going to stay or come with?"

"I'm as tired as you are, I'm right behind you."

"Yeah, I think Alexis and I are done for the day, too. So you want to meet up tomorrow?"

"It'd be nice, but we have to be at the airport by 10:00. My vacation is over."

"Too bad. We're here another week. Maybe, when we get back to New York, we can get together." He pulled out his phone, preparing to enter her information into it.

She shook her head. "Don't think so. But, hey, if you kill someone, you can be sure I'll find you."

As the women left, Lanie was heard to say. "What _are_ you thinking girl? He's cute, he's successful, he's smart, and he's _interested_! And if you were to tell truth, you'd admit you're interested, too."

"Lanie, shut up."

Castle and Alexis got up to leave. He watched Kate's retreating figure for as long as she was in sight, then turned and left a generous tip for the waitress.

"I thought dinner was on management, dad?"

"It was, but waitstaff get paid very little and she gave good service. It's just a thing of mine. I guess it's because I remember when your grandmother waited tables between roles. The tips sometimes made the difference between eating canned soup and crackers and eating hamburgers."

"So, are you going to try to find Kate when we get back to New York?"

"Try? There is no try, there is only do."

"Bad Yoda, dad."

The rest of the week passed. Sometimes, when they were on the slopes or exploring the town and it's shops, it seemed to go too quickly. Sometimes, it dragged. But it went without incident. Until Saturday.

Saturday started uneventfully. They had, by then learned the breakfast lesson, and ate well before going to the lodge, though, usually, they were hungry well before lunchtime. Alexis had followed her dad down the black diamond slopes a couple of times and had mastered it easily, though she was concerned because they didn't seem to be groomed to the same standard that the other runs were. Terri explained to her that the grooming, or lack thereof, was considered to be part of the challenge of the hill.

They were skiing back towards the lodge when a person darted out of the tree cover and gave Alexis a vicious shove, sending her on an uncontrolled trajectory toward some trees and an outcropping of rocks. The brief look Castle got of her, before he took off after Alexis, was enough for him to identify her as Liz Kelley.

Alexis had managed to get control of her headlong dive in time to avoid the rocks. She had some scratches from close encounters of the tree kind, but otherwise the only damage was to the respective nerves of father and daughter. Terri Nugent, pulled up close behind them.

"Did either of you manage to see who did that?" She looked angry.

"No," Alexis was shaken.

"Yes, it was Liz Kelley, that girl who pulled the disappearing stunt last Sunday. I'm wondering why she would do such a stupid thing."

"Ok, that confirms what I saw. Would you be willing to go with us to talk to the girl and her parents?'

"Yes. As I said, I want to know why she did it."

Alexis asked, "Both her parents are here?"

"Her dad showed up on Wednesday. Apparently he hasn't been told about her little adventure last week."

All three removed their skis and made their way to the lodge.

The Kelley family was in the manager's office when they arrived. They did not look happy, nor did they look particularly agreeable.

The father went on the attack the moment they entered. "What the Hell was your stupid little brat doing, getting in my daughter's way like that?"

Castle was momentarily taken aback, but it was only momentary. "My stupid little brat? There are witnesses that will confirm that your daughter deliberately shoved mine, very nearly causing serious injury," He looked at Liz, "and I want to know why."

"My daughter did nothing wrong. You…"

"You will shut up." Castle was deadly quiet. "Your daughter shoved my daughter with intent to injure. I want to know why. Her answer will determine whether I file a lawsuit or not."

'I'm sure she had a good reason."

"As I said, you will shut up. I want to hear your daughter's answer, not your rationalization." He looked at Liz.

"She isn't going to say anything without a lawyer."

"Ok, so you want lawyers involved. Lawsuit it is. By the way, did your wife tell you what Liz was up to last Sunday?"

Kelley turned to his wife with a questioning look.

"It was nothing, dear, just a little mischief."

Terri spoke up, "It was a 'little mischief' that involved the Breckenridge Police Department, the Breckenridge Fire Department, the Ski Patrol and half the people skiing here – including an NYPD detective, Mr. Castle, and his daughter. Your daughter decided to 'disappear' for a bit, which, of course, led to her mother nearly having a panic attack and us launching a full-scale search for her. Missing skiers, whatever their age, are not taken lightly here. We searched for a good three hours before Mr. Castle's daughter realized what she was up to and told her father who, in turn, told us. It could have ended very badly, not just for your daughter, but for anyone who had a real emergency and found needed resources unavailable because they were being wasted on a little girl's 'little mischief'."

"I think you're overstating the situation, Ms. Nugent," Mrs. Kelley stated coldly.

"I think I'm not, especially now that your daughter has attacked the girl who was instrumental in finding her. I think you and your husband will be very interested in the bill awaiting you. The bill that covers not just your stay here, but the cost for the time and resources spent by the police department, the fire department, the ski patrol, and the lodge staff in the search for your daughter."

Castle leaned forward, "Now, do you suppose your daughter could explain why she attacked Alexis? I really do want to know."

"Liz, don't say a word. You don't have to explain yourself to anybody."

Liz folded her arms and glared at Castle and Alexis. "See, I don't have to say anything."

"You're right, you don't," Castle smiled, it wasn't a nice smile. "I'm sure that when your parents lose the lawsuit I intend bringing, they, and ultimately you, will change have a change of mind."

Castle got out of his chair and nodded to Alexis who rose as well. "We're done here," he said. The left.

"Dad, are you _really_ going to sue them?"

"Yep. They're the kind of entitled types that think they can do what they want with no consequences. Well, they're going to get it from all sides now. The lodge and the City of Breckenridge are going to hit them with a bill that will probably be seven figures. With that information and the testimony of Terri and other members of the Ski Patrol and some of the volunteer searchers, we stand a good chance of winning."

Alexis had visions running through her head of a trip to Disneyworld and possibly tickets to a concert or show. "what are you going to do with the money?'

"Don't be too eager, punkin', the Ski Patrol here, and pretty much everywhere, is underfunded and underequipped, I plan on donating whatever is awarded to them."

"Not even a little bit for your daughter who was so viciously attacked?" Alexis batted her eyes at him.

"Brat. I'll buy you some ice cream. And I did see a stuffed white bunny at that store you liked – a snow bunny for my snow bunny."

"You're evil."

"I know. Come on, today's our last day here, let's make it good – get some souvenirs, have dinner at The Dredge. Don't worry, I made reservations."

"Sounds good." She paused, "you know, dad, I kind of feel sorry for Liz. It looks to me like she gets money and things instead of time and love and expectations instead of affection. Promise me you'll never be like her parents."

"I couldn't if I tried."

The day had been long and extremely tiring, souvenirs and gifts had been purchased, dinner had been consumed. When they got back to the condo, it was close to six, they spent time packing and they just vegged in the living room for a couple of hours, dozing in front of the fireplace, pretending to watch **Buffy the Vampire Slayer** , finally giving up and going to bed as Caleb was about to start re-enacting his past murders.


End file.
